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Iridium
Resumes Satellite Phone Service
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On March 29, the
new privately held Iridium Satellite LLC will activate its 66
satellites and begin connecting commercial calls. Iridium Satellite
plans to market service to corporations, including companies in the
mining, shipping and aviation industries. Iridium Satellite will
begin a 12-month, US$9 million marketing campaign aimed at potential
customers this coming week. Iridium Satellite will have monthly
expenses of just US$7 million. The Boeing Company is operating the
system for Iridium Satellite.
Iridium Satellite
service will be available for no more than an estimated US$1.50 a
minute. When Iridium Satellite customers call other subscribers of
the service, the company will charge just US$0.50 a minute. Handsets
will cost US$950. Iridium Satellite expects new satellite phones to
be available by August. The smaller phones, to be made by Motorola
Corp., will cost an estimated US$1,500. Phones issued by the former
Iridium can be used on the new Iridium Satellite system as long as
subscribers have new software installed in the phones. Iridium
Satellite also plans to begin marketing a service in June to let
subscribers get dial-up Internet access by hooking their satellite
phone to a computer. It will transmit data at 2.4 kilobits per
second. The company will also market an Internet service that
transmits data at 10 kilobits per second.
A group of 13
companies are beginning to market Iridium Satellite phones and
service. Iridium Satellite scrapped an exclusivity clause that
limits where service providers can market service. Iridium Satellite
has cut loose most of its worldwide network of 12 gateways, the
privately owned ground stations Iridium contracted with to have
subscribers' calls connected to telephone networks. Iridium's
revenue was limited by an agreement to share revenue with the
gateways. Iridium Satellite ended its agreements with all gateways
it didn't own. Commercial calls in the U.S. will go through a Tempe,
Ariz., gateway which Iridium Satellite owns. Calls made by the U.S.
Department of Defense will go through a Hawaii gateway which the
company owns. Iridium Satellite plans to buy a gateway in Europe
later this year.
Iridium Satellite
paid US$25 million to acquire the 66 satellite system.
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